2. River's Edge Taco Fest, Council Bluffs(Aug. 4) Twenty of the area’s best taco-centric restaurants offer a wide range of mouth-watering taco creations. The day is packed with incredible national and local musical performances, live Lucha Libre wrestling matches and the metro area’s fastest Chihuahuas racing and strutting their stuff in a beauty pageant. [Note: Taco Fest is for ages 21 and older.]

3. Iowa State Fair, Des Moines(Aug. 9-19) "Nothing Compares" to Iowa's largest tourism event. More than a million people each year are drawn to the mouth-watering food (this year there are 50+ new food items to try in addition to more than 70 items already served up "on-a-stick"), fabulous entertainment, one of the world's largest livestock shows and countless zany contests.

4. Underground Independence, Independence(Aug. 18) Visit the original Independence - now six feet lower than present Main Street. The tour, which starts at the Wapsipinicon Mill, goes into downtown businesses basements, so walking shoes and comfortable clothing are recommended.

5. WWII Ship Tours in the Quad Cities, Bettendorf(Aug. 30 - Sept. 3) The USS LST-325, a World War II amphibious vessel measuring almost as long as a football field, will dock on the Mississippi Riverfront near the Isle Casino Hotel. Tours of the ship available daily. The USS LST-325 operated in the North Africa area and was part of the largest armada in history by participating in the D-Day invasion at Omaha Beach.

Can't make it to any of these? No problem! See our complete list of Iowa events here!